The Caged Heart Chronicles, Part I: Renegade
by Loffyglu
Summary: Wes, estranged from his family and made Team Snagem's captive, breaks from his decade-long prison and is on the run from a gang that wants to take back what he took from them. Rui, a sheltered Unovan girl, must navigate the treacherous land of Orre with only an ex-criminal as her guide. Meanwhile, a more sinister threat lurks in the desert shadows. Pokémon Colosseum novelization.
1. Prologue

_A/N: Hello, everyone! This here's a project that I've been working on since last November; it started out as a NaNoWriMo attempt, but after that fell through, I decided that I still wanted to continue writing it. This first installment of _The Caged Heart Chronicles_ is a _Pokémon Colosseum_ novelization, but I can tell you right now that this is not simply going to be a repetition of the Orre games. What would be the point in writing this, after all, if I was just going to rehash a game and story that already exist? _CHC: Renegade_ is _Pokémon Colosseum_, to be sure, but it's also going to be more than that._

_So, without further ado, let's begin!_

* * *

Eclo Canyon. Situated in the depths of an Orre desert, this dark scar on the face of a sandy plain cloaked a metallic nest in its rocky depths. A Skarmory perched far above at the face of the canyon, steely gold eyes fixed below. Not a soul had stirred around the hideout all day, and yet the silver condor would not retire from his post. Nothing escaped the bird's view, not even in the inky darkness of a moonless night such as this one.

Unbeknownst to these watchful eyes, the true threat would come from within the very hideout they were guarding.

The black night turned to a bright yellow as a deafening crash rocked the barren land. The Skarmory squacked. Torn from his perch, he beat his crimson wings furiously to stay airborne. Steel chunks flew through the air, and half of the building was now engulfed in tongues of orange fire.

Below the guardian bird, thick smoke masked a willowy figure that trudged through the smoldering debris. Shades obscured the teenager's eyes and his left hand was cupped over his nose and mouth to shield him from the dust and smoke, but he made his way into the room that was the source of the explosion. A small machine the size of his arm still hung from its resting place on a torso-shaped stand, miraculously surviving the disaster that had consumed its surroundings.

The teenager smirked. This device was what he was here for, what he had come to take from those who had used it - abused it - for far too long. He wasted no time in unhinging the machine and strapping it to his right arm, its orange coils alight as it sensed that it was now in use. The boy turned in the opposite directed and bolted, amber eyes scanning the vicinity for a companion he knew was waiting for him.

Sure enough, he heard a series of loud barks coming from a black, fox-like creature standing guard at a hole in the wall created by the blast. Though his eyes narrowed as they were stung by smoke, the Umbreon's gaze never left his trainer's.

The boy nodded to him as he ran. "Koray, let's move!"

Koray did not hesitate to dash after his trainer, but frequently glanced backwards should any enemies have emerged from the base. They neared an enormous, hovercraft-style motorcycle that housed a delicate-looking feline creature. The Espeon's big, purple eyes looked on at the pair racing towards the vehicle as if urging them to keep moving, and the teenager felt his pace quicken as his gaze met hers; they were being followed, and he was absolutely certain of it when he heard the lavender feline let out a panicked mewling.

The boy flung himself onto his motorcycle and Koray leapt beside the Espeon, pressing against her as if to comfort her. The teenager looked to the damaged base and could see, silhouetted by the flames behind them, a crowd of men led by a huge, muscled figure continuing to race towards him. Cursing under his breath, the boy retrieved a tiny device from one of his trenchcoat pockets and slammed his thumb against the single button that was on it. Eclo Canyon was now completely engulfed in a blinding, white light, an even harsher blast making its presence known in the desert. _That ought to stall them,_ the boy thought, _at least for now._

Even more importantly, the hell that he had spent the past seven years trapped in was no more.

He raced away, eyes focused straight ahead of him. He would not look back; he would never dream of it. His ties with that heinous group had been severed once and for all.


	2. Chapter 1

_A/N: So, I've broken my "no updates until I've written three chapters ahead" rule, in part because I've been incredibly busy with graduation coming up (opposite of what you'd think, right?) and in part because... why not?_

* * *

The Outskirt Stand had to have been the only semblance of civilization for miles in the middle of a barren desert. Despite this, it saw many passersby in its day, especially in the forms of naïve travelers and wanderers with no place else to go. A gas pump lay outside what used to be a locomotive and what now served as a rusted, yet still functional, diner.

Wes parked his motorcycle just by the gas pump and stood by, tapping his foot impatiently whilst he waited for his tank to fill. The sun had risen since his escape from Team Snagem, yet he had not rested until he was certain that the gang would be unable to track him down. Koray and Wes' Espeon, Tesni, lay comfortably in the circular bike sidecar - looking at their flanks rising and falling and at Tesni's leg twitching in the midst of a dream, Wes couldn't help but feel envious of his Pokémon. He failed to stifle a yawn before disconnecting his bike. He stretched in an attempt to wake himself up a bit before heading to his next destination...

...Until his eye caught two thuggish-looking men exiting the locomotive.

One of them, spiky blond hair tipped with orange and a blue tattoo lining his bare arm, let out a belch before sighing contentedly. "Ahh, damn, did we pig out or what? Nothin' like eating your weight after a job!"

The other, clad in an orange vest and a blue-and-white-striped beanie, nodded in agreement. "And right after we hauled ourselves that sorta catch, too." He motioned with his hand towards the beaten-looking, green truck that was parked nearby. Looking at it, Wes could swear that he saw the sack in its trunk squirming a bit... Couldn't he?

"Hah, and just think'a the rewards the boss'll be fixin' us up with! Gotta say, we're livin' the good life here."

The pair laughed their way to the truck and drove away, leaving a thick cloud of exhaust in their wake. Wes' eyes watered as the fumes reached his face, but his attention shifted away from the vanishing pair to his Espeon sniffing at the run-down locomotive. Though she mewed sleepily, her forked tail was twitching anxiously and her nose wrinkled at the aroma of cooked food coming from the vehicle.

"You hungry, Tesni?" Wes could immediately tell that she was; she had to be, considering how long ago she had been fed.

He also heard Koray stir from the motorcycle and realized that the Umbreon would probably have an empty stomach, as well. Besides, Wes was fully aware that he would have to keep his own strength up.

"C'mon, let's see what they have," he said, walking over to Koray and nudging him further out of his sleep. "Should have something for you, too."

The black-furred creature yawned and stretched, and his companion perked up at the prospect of, at long last, a meal. They followed their trainer into the rustic stand and were immediately surrounded by the tang of greasy, overlooked food being served to the diner's patrons. The idle chatter of a lone couple and the clanging of silverware filled the cramped space. A burly figure was hunched over the counter that greeted new customers, visibly excited to serve somebody after days of inactivity at the lonely diner.

"'Ey, welcome to the Outskirt Stand! Got the best selections you can find in this part o' Orre. So, what'll it be?"

"You got anything these guys can eat?" Wes gestured to Tesni and Koray, who were both beginning to fidget in anticipation.

"Sure do. Always got some Poké Food in stock, most o' the customers we bein' trainers..." The man turned to grab two bowls and a crumpled bag branded with a Poké Ball pattern and a smiling Pikachu. "You make yourself comfy, son. Anything I could get for ya?"

Wes shrugged, frankly uninterested in engaging just about anyone in conversation, much less someone who would probably want to keep him in the stand for as long as he could squeeze out the boy's precious time and money. "No, just them."

"Hm..." The bartender returned with the bowls filled with dried pellets. "Well, a'right. Ya do look awfully skinny, though..."

Wes deliberately averted his gaze as he handed the food to his Pokémon. He didn't find being scrutinized by somebody to be all that appealing, either, and chose to turn his attention to the flickering, old television situated near the wall.

"...An explosion in Eclo Canyon. An investigation revealed the ruins of what is almost certainly Team Snagem's base of operations."

So, they had already noticed. Wes continued to listen intently, masking his interest the best that he could.

"Police have arrested several members of the criminal syndicate and have taken them in for questioning. Their alleged leader, Vulten Gonzap, has not been found thus far."

Questioning. Dammit. There was no reason they would withhold information about Wes. In fact, he was certain they would reveal everything about him. Where, then, could he hide once the authorities knew where to look for the sandy-haired, blue-cloaked teenager?

Attempting to distract himself, Wes looked down at Koray and Tesni. The two had nearly finished their meal; Tesni purred contentedly and rubbed against Wes' leg while Koray yawned and stretched.

"Time to go?" Wes asked his Pokémon, though he had already stood up and paid the tender for the food. In the corner of his gaze, he noticed a pink-haired man tapping his foot with anticipation and eyeing Wes as if eager to stop him before leaving the diner. Wes grunted, attempting to ignore him, and motioned for Tesni and Koray to follow him out.

"Hey! You! Wait up!"

Wes froze, an automatic reaction to anyone calling for him in such a manner. Tesni yelped and spun around, the fur on her back bristling, but found only the pink-haired man from inside. Wes turned to confront him and sighed internally.

"Hey, hey, sorry! Didn't mean to get ya worked up." The man chuckled and held out his hand. "Name's Willie. Was seein' you with your Pokémon in there... An Espeon and an Umbreon. Been looking to have a battle with Pokémon that strong." He briefly paused, and Wes became uncomfortably aware of his eyes scanning the teenager's person for something resembling a Poké Ball belt. "You... you _are_ a trainer, yeah?"

"I am," Wes grunted. _Just what is this guy trying to pull? _"I'm guessing you want to battle me?"

Willie jumped, his face aglow. "Hell yeah! You've got no idea how much I've been itchin' for a fight. C'mon, let's do it!"

Absolutely elated, Willie nearly slipped a few meters away from the locomotive. A low rumble escaped from Koray's throat.

"Don't worry," Wes said, his voice just low enough that Willie would not hear. "He can't be that tough; besides, ya might need a little training for what's probably ahead of us." When Koray bristled, Wes added, rolling his eyes, "_Not_ because I think you're weak."

"Hey! C'mon, c'mon!" Willie flailed his arms wildly to get Wes' attention, a Poké Ball in each hand. "'M just itchin' to get started, here!"

Willie, fueled all the more by a cry of "Yea-hah!" thrust the red-and-white spheres high above his head. The rays of white light that were unleashed took the forms of two tiny, brown, raccoon-like creatures with zigzagged fur patterns. They howled identical cries of "Zigzag-oooon!" with only a nicked ear on one differentiating him from his brother.

"Alright. Tesni, Koray, you know the drill."

The knowing look that Tesni gave her companion conveyed that the pair did, indeed, already have a battle plan. The crimson gem on Tesni's forehead glowed; the Espeon and Umbreon were both bathed in a protective, blue light. Koray, now secure in knowing that he was guarded against attacks, raced toward the Zigzagoon with the torn ear, glistening fangs bared. The little raccoon braced itself against a direct charge, but Koray feinted downward and chomped down on Zigzagoon's leg. He howled and, taken off balance, toppled to the ground.

"Iggy!" Willie called. "Don't let 'em get cha like that! Aggy, Tackle!"

Loyal Aggy, already charging into Koray's side, needed no command from his trainer to know that his brother was in trouble. Koray gasped; while Tesni's Reflect barrier cushioned what could have been a much heavier blow, the wind was still knocked out of Koray's lungs.

Tesni responded readily to Koray's predicament by channeling her psychic powers into Aggy. A confused Zigzagoon found himself lifted into the air, paws flailing wildly in a vain effort to escape the invisible grip.

"Nice," Wes said. "Toss him against that gear."

Tesni tossed her head in the direction of a large, old gear that was half-buried in the sand and sent a screeching Aggy hurling towards it. The Zigzagoon tumbled and made a vain effort to stand back up to fight, but his short legs gave out and he collapsed, unable to continue the battle.

Meanwhile, Koray spun to face Iggy once more, hissing to intimidate him. Iggy yelped and Koray saw his chance to strike; he pounced on the Zigzagoon, who now struggled to remain balanced, and tore at his hide with teeth and claws. Iggy's resistance was reduced to the panicked flailing of his legs until he was too exhausted to continue.

"Enough, Koray," Wes grumbled. "You've won."

A whimpering Zigzagoon, his face buried in his front paws, looked up tentatively when he felt the weight of his attacker lifted off of him. The Umbreon had vanished in a flash of red light and was absorbed into one of Wes' own red-and-white spheres; Tesni was recalled into another, identical-looking Poké Ball that Wes stuffed into his coat pockets once the two were gone.

Iggy clumsily scrambled for his Trainer, who knelt down to scratch his young Pokémon behind the ear.

"Aw, it's alright, buddy. You did your best out there!" Willie withdrew his Zigzagoon pair just as Wes recalled his Pokémon. "Ya both did! Still..." He stood up to face Wes. "To get handed the loss like that…. Guess I still need seasoning."

Well, Wes thought, he was right about that, at least. He was obviously a rookie who was just beginning to get his feet wet and his Zigzagoon were both quite young; just barely old enough to begin battling, from the looks of it.

"So, anyway, you gotta be a traveler if you're stopping at the Outskirt Stand, yeah? You headed to Phenac?"

"Phenac City? Not in particular," Wes replied. It was only a half-truth; he indeed hoped to find temporary lodging in the oasis city, but he knew that staying in one place for very long would be as good as suicide as long as Team Snagem was still on the hunt for him.

"Oh…. Well, if ya need a place to stay, it _is_ the closest city. Could stock up on supplies, too…" Willie shrugged. "But yeah, just be careful. 'Course, I'm sure you already know that."

Wes gave a curt nod in response. "Yeah. Oughta get going. Koray, Tesni, you two ready?"

Koray was already leaping into the sidecar of the motorbike, while Tesni was mewling for Wes to join them.

Willie laughed. "A'ight, then. Good luck out there, yeah? If I see ya again, of course we gotta have another battle."

Wes briefly looked over his shoulder at Willie to show that he acknowledged his response before revving up his engine and speeding away, leaving a tall stream of desert sand in his wake.

* * *

In the midst of Orre's barren, desert landscape lie a city built upon a sparkling oasis. Its magnificent walls of marble lined crystal-clear streams that traveled along the city's edges and emptied into shimmering pools, only to be picked up yet again and sent back to repeat the cycle. By and large, Phenac City was considered not only an oasis in the literal sense, but also figuratively, as it was one of the few areas in Orre that was relatively untouched by the rampant crime that the region was so infamous for.

Outside the city's walls, however, seemed to be another story entirely, if the two shady-looking men hauling a squirming bag at the entrance to Phenac were any indication.

"Dammit, Trudly!" The one with the mohawk was visibly shaking, the haul too heavy for his skinny arms even with his comrade's help. "How long we gotta carry this thing?! Just keeps squirmin' and squirmin'…"

"Just shut it," Trudly snapped. "The city's right there. We just get in there 'n meet the boss—"

He was interrupted by a muffled cry that even Wes and his Pokémon, perched several feet away on the motorbike, could hear.

"Smmurn! Hlp! Hlp mih!"

Wes tensed. There _was_ somebody in that bag!

"Shit! So much for the goddamn tape…" Trudly groaned. He hissed to the sack, "You shut your mouth if ya know what's good for ya, ya hear?!"

It was enough to catch the attention of two Phenac citizens passing by from beyond the archway separating the city from the desert. Their eyes widened and they ran over to the two ruffians.

"What was that?" one of them, a jogger, asked. "What _is_ that? Phenac doesn't need any smugglers, here."

"_Smugglers_?" Folly grunted. "Naw, naw, we're _kidnappers_, got it? Kidnap—"

Trudly dropped his side of the bag, causing another shriek to emit from it, to smack Folly upside the head. "The hell?! You just gotta tell the world what we're up to, eh?"

"Eeon! Eeon!" Tesni was tugging at Wes' sleeve and pointing with her tail at the kidnappers, but Wes needed no prompting to confront the two. His mind immediately flashed to a horrible incident from his childhood; it was so long ago, yet it was still so fresh in Wes' memory.

He thought of the terrible things he had been doing for the past ten years, everything that had been inflicted on _him_, and all that he had been ordered to unleash on other trainers.

He could not allow that nonsense to continue.

Wes stepped forward without a second thought and Koray bounded ahead of his trainer, growling at the kidnappers. Trudly and Folly spun to face Wes.

"Hah? You think you're about to stop us?" Trudly spat. "Yo, Folly! You got your Whismurs on ya, right? Why don't ya take care of 'em?"

Folly smirked. "'Course. A'ight, Merry, Iza!" He tossed two Poké Balls in front of Wes and Koray, releasing two identical-looking, pink, rabbit-like creatures.

_They can't be too difficult to deal with,_ Wes thought. At the very least, they certainly didn't seem to be terribly strong; Wes had the feeling that he had fought worse.

"Koray, Tesni! Hit 'em with Confusion, Bite! Go!"

As the gem on Tesni's forehead began to glow a brilliant scarlet, Koray bared his fangs and lashed out at the larger of the pair. The other, smaller Whismur was lifted off the ground and rendered immobile.

Unfortunately for Wes' Pokémon, neither Whismurs were silenced by the assaults.

Two simultaneous, ear-splitting screeches pierced the air. Wes and the two Phenac citizens who had come to his aid winced and clutched at their ears; Trudly and Folly, however, seemed barely phased. Folly smirked and muttered something – whether a smug remark or a comment to his Pokémon, Wes could not tell over the Whismurs' – and both Tesni and Koray ceased their attacks. The two trembled, Koray crying out in pain and Tesni releasing her psychic hold on her target. Wes' ears began to ring as a searing pain began to ricochet through his skull.

"Tes… Tesni!" Wes managed to call out, praying for some miracle that would allow his Espeon to hear him. "Y-you might not be able to move… but try to _focus_!" His eyes scanned the area for anything – dear Lugia, _anything_ – that she could use to deafen the Whismurs' screeching. "Water! Tesni! Try tossing them in the water!"

At first, Tesni appeared unresponsive, her body still shaking and her ears still flattened. It was not until seconds after Wes had given his command that he noticed the smaller opponent begin to float inches above the ground. The Whismur continued her uproar as she was budged ever so slowly towards one of Phenac's artificial streams. As soon as the Whismur loomed over the water, Tesni dropped her, moaning from the pain of doing so in the midst of being assaulted by her opponents' sonic attacks. With a splash as she plunged into the water, the Whismur and her ally fell silent.

"Gah! Iza!" Folly cried. To Wes, he growled, "You damn little… A dirty trick, that's what that was!"

"Any dirtier than taking someone away from their home?!" Wes demanded. He could feel anger sharp as barbed wire rising from deep within his chest – at _Folly_, Wes tried to convince himself, at this _lowlife_, not at anything else – "Tesni, get the other one; Koray, hold the one in the water down. I'd better not even hear her _squeal_."

Wes' fury had reached its boiling point, and if there was one thing Wes just couldn't do, it was to hold back his rage. To forcibly take someone, throw them in a sack as if they were an old doll, haul them off like cargo, and _then_ have the courage – no, the utter _stupidity_ – to claim _Wes_ was fighting dirty?

It reminded him far too much of everything he had once seen day after day.

It reminded him far too much of himself.

A woman clad in pink – one of the two who had been witnessing the scene – squeezed Wes' shoulder and cried, "Hang on, stop! Aren't you going a bit too far?"

"Hmph! You're tryin' a _kill_ 'em! That's it, ain't it?" Folly swiftly withdrew both Iza and Merry; with nothing left to fight, Koray got out of the water and shook droplets off of his dark fur.

"I'm no murderer," Wes growled, addressing Folly, "but I'll be damned if I ever have to justify myself to scum like you."

Trudly stomped the ground in frustration. "That's it; we don't got a chance against this freak. I'm out!" He scurried away into the city, Folly close behind after a frightened plea of, "T-Trudly! Wait!"

The woman still gawked as Wes in disbelief. "You… they were thugs, for sure, but… you weren't really about to _kill_—"

"Like I said, I'm not a killer." Wes had to fight in order to restrain himself from snapping at her. "But you can't stand there and tell me they didn't deserve to be taught a thing or two."

The women bowed her head and backed away, but not without casting Wes a piercing glare. The jogger was already kneeling besides the sack's opening, fingering its knot and wincing at the difficulty of getting it undone.

"Augh.… Hey, ah, whoever's in there," he murmured, "It's alright now. We're getting you out, okay?"

At last, the knot was undone and a girl scrambled out of the bag. She gasped for a breath of fresh air and her exhale came in the form of a loud, frightened cry. She latched onto the jogger and, her face buried in his shoulder, began to sob.

"Uh…" The jogger awkwardly patted the girl on the back, exchanging bewildered glances with the others. "S-see? We got you out; those thugs are gone."

"You're in Phenac City now," the woman said reassuringly. "They ran off; I don't think you'll have to worry about them again."

"But…" the girl sobbed, the jogger's yellow shirt and strands of her own red hair becoming drenched in tears. "But who got them? Who chased them away?"

The woman grew visibly tense once more, but the jogger, pointing to Wes, answered before she could speak: "That guy. He sent them packing; like, you should've seen the way they just _bolted_!"

The girl turned to Wes, her azure eyes swollen from crying. "You did? Thank… Thank you!" Without warning, she charged into Wes and locked him in a tight embrace; now it was Wes' turn to look bemused. "I thought for sure I'd never be saved! I gotta know your name!"

"Er…" Wes didn't suppose much harm could come from telling a teenaged girl his first name, if nothing else. "It's Wes. And you?"

"Oh! I'm sorry!" She scratched the back of her head and gave an awkward smile. "I didn't even tell you mine; way to be thoughtless, me!" A small laugh, and then, "I'm Rui. I'd been on my way to Agate Village, but…" A shadow was cast over her face as she trailed off. "Um…. Question: The Pokémon they used; did they seem, like… _odd_, I guess? Like they were really aggressive or had a black aura?"

_Black aura? What is she even talking about?_ Wes looked at Rui quizzically, as did the two bystanders. "Well, no and no…" _Mine had to have been the aggressive ones,_ he thought darkly. As Wes' own anger melted away, he began to second-guess the commands he gave to Koray; was trying to restrain the Whismur underwater really going a bit too far?

"What do you mean by a 'black' aura, though?" the woman inquired Rui. "I've heard of aura-reading, I mean, but if there was anything, then I couldn't see it."

"Yanno what, though?" The jogger spoke this time. "Mayor Es Cade might know something about that. His house isn't too far…" He turned and pointed somewhere to the northwest. "Past the central fountain, up the stairs, then right in front of the hotel. I've heard rumors – just rumors, really – that he's dealt with things like that before; auras or something… But yeah, anyway, probably worth a shot."

Rui's face visibly brightened. "And maybe he knows about the kidnappers, too! Alright; thanks so much!" She took one half of a step forward but froze, fearfulness clouding her face. "Oh…. Um…. Wes? I'm probably… well, no, I'm _totally_ imposing… but would it be alright if you escorted me to the mayor's house? I don't know if those goons would come back for me, but if you're with me, I could be a lot safer."

"His house is near a hotel, he said? Guess that would be fine," Wes replied. He would have been headed in that direction anyway; he had arrived at Phenac only for temporary lodging and to stock up on supplies, but the mayor's house was not terribly out of the way. Besides, he did want to ensure that Rui would not be harassed again.

"Thank you! Thank you so much! I know I'll be safe when you're around!" Rui glanced down at Tesni and Koray, grinned, and knelt down to pet them. "And these little guys, too! Seriously, what cutie pies!"

Koray squeezed his eyes shut – a gesture that Wes recognized as one of annoyance – while Tesni purred, basking in Rui's adoration. The little Espeon rolled over onto her back, exposing her belly as a sign of approval, at which Rui's heart seemed to melt into a soppy, doting puddle.

"Oh, you're just the cutest little thing! You want a belly rub, sweetie?"

Tesni stretched contentedly as Rui affectionately stroked the lavender feline's stomach. Koray growled in his companion's ear, but she shot him what could only have been a look of disapproval.

Both of the bystanders appeared amused at the sight of Rui fawning over Tesni. At the very least, Rui's mind now seemed to have drifted from her recent ordeal.

"Think you guys'll be okay from here on out?" the jogger asked Wes after giving a small chuckle at Rui and Tesni.

"Should be, yeah; you two ought to head off, too." Wes was looking particularly at the woman in pink, who eyed the scraggly-looking teenager warily.

"Well…" She sighed. "Alright. Good luck." She walked away, glancing back at Wes and Rui once more before she and the jogger went on their ways.

Wes cleared his throat. "Right. We should probably get going. The sooner we get you to the mayor's, the better."

"Oh, definitely." Rui stroked Tesni one last time and rose to her feet. "Before they decide to come back for me, for sure."

* * *

As it turned out, Mayor Es Cade's home would be the furthest thing from safe for Rui.

A tiny, round old man cowered behind his desk and sunk even further into his chair when Wes and Rui arrived; a golden plate situated at the edge of the mahogany desk revealed his name and title as that of Mayor Eustace Es Cade's. A small, bulky Pokémon – a Makuhita, Wes realized – restlessly punched the air with his gloved, black fists. Rui's face was drained of all color the second she spotted the light beige creature and clung to Wes' arm.

Just behind the Makuhita and a willowy, dancing man were Trudly and Folly.

Trudly's eyes blazed behind his red-tinted shades. Rui yelped at the sight of her captors and hid behind Wes as if her rescuer was a human shield.

"No…" Her voice trembled. "This isn't happening; not here…"

"Boss!" Trudly pointed his finger lividly at the newcomers. "It's them! The bitch we caught and the nutcase who got us!"

The slender figure spun around without ceasing his rhythmic side-stepping. He had to have been the most peculiar-looking man Wes had ever seen: Glittering, golden dance attire reflected fragments of the ceiling lights, as did his purple-and-gold sunglasses. His most striking feature had to have been his enormous afro; appearing to be at least a third as tall as his body and with its left side red and right side white, he could have best been described as being like a Poké Ball atop a swaying, sparkling twig.

"Oh, _my_!" His voice was strong and hearty while somehow retaining an almost effeminate quality. "Now aren't _they_ some darling little children? You let such a cute little things get away? Aw, now ain't that a shame!"

Everything about this man, from his voice to his apparent habit of dancing in place, should have told Wes that he would have been the furthest thing from a threat. However – and he couldn't be certain what it was, whether it was the thugs flanking him or his downright chipper demeanor in the face of kidnapping a girl and apparently terrorizing Phenac's mayor – Wes was absolutely certain that this was not somebody with whom it would be wise to mess with.

"What d'you even want with her?" Wes demanded against his better judgment. "What use is a teenaged girl to people like you?!"

"You mean she didn't already tell you, boy?" The strange man cackled. "She went and saw a couple'a things most people aren't supposed to see. 'Course, that just wouldn't mesh well with us at all. Had to keep the little mouse quiet, see? And now…" He twirled, completing nearly a full circle until he faced his two peons. "I don't got time to play here anymore. You two go and have a little fun with these darlings for me, hm?"

Both Folly and Trudly straightened up at their boss' command and cried, "Will do, sir!"

Their boss' dancing did not cease even as he made his exit. For a brief moment, he and Mayor Es Cade exchanged some sort of glance – a glance that was so brief that Wes had no idea what was being communicated between the two. Then he was gone, leaving his minions alone to deal with Wes and Rui.

"Now, let me tell ya," Trudly said, taking several steps forward, "I really don't think ya got any idea what the hell it is you're dealin' with. Ya see that Makuhita?" Trudly gestured to the Fighting-type Pokémon, who was still restlessly punching at the air. "'Till ya just stay outta our business and leave the bitch with us, that thing ain't gonna have no problem wreckin' ya." Makuhita –" Trudly crossed his arms and leaned against the mayor's desk as if this was the most casual situation in the world, "—get 'im."

"No! Wes!" Rui cried, squeezing his arm once again. "Your Pokémon! Send—"

Rui's warning came too late; before she could finish, the Makuhita slammed into Wes' stomach and sent him and Rui crashing into a potted plant. Wes spluttered, the wind completely knocked out of him, as the Makuhita continued to pound at Wes' face. Wes could barely move; every punch thrown felt as if it could shatter his jaw, and Wes failed to block the blows with his arms. However, through the pain, he felt a small hand reaching into his coat pocket. _Rui?_

Bright, white beams of light materialized from that pocket. All that Wes could then see from behind the Makuhita were a lithe, feline shape and a darker, fox-like creature charging at Wes' attacker. The Makuhita rolled with the impact off of Wes. At last, Wes was able to catch his breath, though each gasp for air felt as if he were breaking in needles that stabbed at his jaw. He couldn't even give commands to his Umbreon and Espeon, but when it came to protecting their trainer – their best friend – there was no need for any orders.

Tesni surrounded herself and Koray with a blue veil, weakening their opponent's attacks. Koray went on the offensive while Tesni worked to keep the shield as strong as possible. Koray lunged at the Makuhita and feigning to avoid as many blows as possible.

"Wes."

Wes heard a small whisper from behind him. It was Rui.

"That Makuhita…. Look. See how it's battling?"

Wes had paid little attention to the Pokémon's demeanor when it was assaulting him, but looking at it now – or, at least, as much as his throbbing jaw would allow him to focus – he definitely noticed that something about the Makuhita just wasn't _right_. There was no trace of any emotion on its wide, yellow face; even aggression, an emotion that Wes would have expected out of anyone fighting so brutally, was completely absent. His movements lacked any sort of tactic; any evidence of a refined fighting style or even of a personality at all was nonexistent. If Wes hadn't known any better, he might have assumed that he was looking at not a living being, but at a machine.

"Like there's no emotion at all…" he muttered.

"That's because there _isn't_. His aura is completely black…" Rui's paused, then hastily added, "Can't you see it?"

"Its _aura_?" He had little way of knowing this. Some psychics, human or Pokémon, were able to detect the auras of living beings; of that much, at least, he had heard of. Wes, however, was no psychic by any stretch of the imagination.

"Like…" Rui paused as if searching for some way to explain what she meant to Wes, but seemed to give up when she added, "Well, the fact that I could see that his aura was black – they captured me because of that!"

The Makuhita was beginning to exhaust himself carrying out command after command of "Shadow Rush!" from Trudly. Koray and Tesni were also growing tired without their trainer to guide them, but the Makuhita's attacks actually seemed to be doing damage to the _attacker_, as well, regardless of whether or not the attacks actually connected; with Tesni's shield running powerfully and Koray dodging swiftly, in fact, they rarely did. Trudly let loose a stream of obscenities as he saw that the Makuhita was essentially defeating itself.

"And they said it was supposed to be real strong," Folly scoffed. "Look, man, it's gonna collapse."

"Y-you shut your damn mouth!" Trudly snapped at his partner. "If I say it fights, it's damn well gonna…" Trudly couldn't even finish his sentence before he noticed the Makuhita collapsing to the floor, his breaths coming out in short, heavy gasps. "No, no, _no_! Get up!" Trudly ran over to the exhausted Pokémon and kicked him in the side. "Piece a' shit, _get up_!"

"Oh my, oh my, oh my!" Es Cade gasped. Amidst the chaos, Wes had nearly forgotten that Phenac's mayor was still in the room. "Please, lad, don't hurt him! You mustn't!"

To the surprise of Wes and probably everyone else, Trudly ceased kicking the Makuhita immediately. With a sigh, he recalled the unconscious Pokémon into a Poké Ball and shot a glance at the mayor; this time, what obscured Wes' view of what that glance contained were Trudly's red shades. He and Folly wordlessly fled Es Cade's home, the front door sliding shut behind them.

With the immediate threat now gone, Rui and Wes were able to stand back up. Rui brushed the dirt from the potted plant off of her while skirt, wincing at what still remained on the fabric.

"Oh, dear…" The mayor stepped out from behind his desk, straightening his ruffled jacket and silver moustache. "Are you children alright?"

"We're fine," Wes said. Well, he was certain that he'd later develop a few bruises on his face, but he had seen much worse before. "Your plant, though…"

"Oh, pay it no mind! Such things are easily replaceable. The welfare of Phenac's citizens is of greater importance to me, lad."

"We ain't—"

"Um! Mr. Mayor!" Rui piped up from behind Wes, interrupting him. "Those men, they… And the Makuhita…!"

"Oh, lass, please settle down," the mayor said reassuringly. "You're alright; there's no more danger. Slowly, now, tell me what's going on."

Rui took a deep breath, forcing herself to keep calm. "Those men who were here just now. They'd… they'd actually kidnapped me because I saw something weird about that Makuhita!"

Es Cade raised his eyebrows; for a brief moment, fear flashed in his eyes. "Something odd? Do you mean in the way they fought?"

"Well, yeah, but…" Rui fixed her gaze on her pink boots. "There was something else. I could see its _aura_, Mr. Mayor, and it was pitch-black! I'd _never_ seen that before, and…" Rui sighed. "I guess they didn't _want_ me seeing that, huh?"

"Oh, my…" Es Cade shook his head sadly. "To think anyone would want to harm such a sweet, young girl. I'm terribly sorry this has happened to you. I can promise that we will not let those crooks get away with what they've done, little lady! I'll order an investigation at once!"

Rui's face brightened. "You will? Oh, thank you so much, Mr. Mayor!"

Es cade chuckled, his smile so large and kindly that his rosy cheeks nearly concealed his eyes. "Of course! We could never let something so heinous go unpunished. But, for the time being… Hm. Well, until we have some sort of information, may I suggest visiting our Phenac Stadium? I'm sure the two of you would enjoy yourselves; many lively battles are staged there."

For a brief moment, Rui appeared thoughtful; Wes could tell that she was considering what Es Cade said carefully. Then, beaming as if a lightbulb had gone off in her head, she turned to Wes.

"We should go! I mean, there have got to be more Pokémon with black auras than that Makuhita, right? We might see them in the tournament battles and be able to figure out what's up with them!"

Wes froze. He had already been putting himself in far more danger than he cared to be in even without surrounding himself with an entire crowd of people. How could he be certain that a member wouldn't be among the crowd or even one of the fighters?

"Could you go alone? I have—"

Rui shook her head. "Wes, I don't have any Pokémon to defend myself with if those creeps come back. It's not even like I know where to go after that; I'm not even _from_ Orre…"

It was true that Wes still couldn't find it in himself to abandon her; not if she seemed to be so helpless on her own. For a moment, Wes tried to imagine himself as an outsider – a position he could indeed relate to very well – to Orre, a region that could be so crime-ridden and lawless that even governing bodies of other regions avoided dealing with it if they could. Leaving such an outsider to fend for herself would be tantamount to leaving her to die in Orre's harsh deserts. Besides, there was also the possibility that Wes would blend in with the crowd enough to go unnoticed by anyone hunting for him.

"Alright," he finally said. "Probably worth a look. I'll have to go and help you find safety afterwards, though, 'kay?"

"You would?" Rui beamed. "Thank you so much!"

Es Cade's smile grew wider. "You do seem like quite the capable young lad. She will surely be safe under your care."

* * *

Wes was now fully convinced that Arceus was bent on ensuring terrible luck wherever the young refugee went.

Three men – all of their heads shaved, all of them wearing red, sleeveless jackets, and all of them glaring at Wes with enough hatred to pierce diamonds – made their presence known just a short distance away from the Phenac Stadium. Wes recognized all of them as Team Snagem grunts, men with whom Wes felt he already had far too much association with. He felt his stomach lurch, and then felt it dissolve completely when the oldest – Wakin, Wes recognized, one of Snagem's highest-ranked members – grabbed Wes by the shoulders and shoved him into one of Phenac's marble walls.

"So this is where you ran off to, eh?" Wakin spat. "Going off to a stadium where you can take some Pokémon for yourself?! And with the Snag Machine you nabbed from us… _After_ trashing our goddamn hideout!" He shoved Wes to the ground, and Wes grunted as his side scraped the concrete pavement.

Rui shrieked. "Who are you men?! Why are you attacking Wes?!"

Wes caught his breath in time to warn Rui before any of the others could speak: "Rui, run! Get ou—"

He felt the toe of a huge, black boot jam into his stomach; he gasped for air. Another Snagem member confronted Rui, who, frozen in shock, had not moved from where she stood.

"And what do we have here?" he sneered. "Found yourself a little chick to play around with? Hah; guessing you didn't tell her, did you?"

"Tell me what?" Rui demanded. "Wes, what's going on?!"

Wakin smirked and the other two Snagem grunts howled with laughter.

"She really doesn't know!" Waking snickered. "You tag along with him and have no idea who he is?"

"Rui!" Wes called. "Get—" Another kick to the stomach.

"I'll have you know," Wakin said, crossing his arms, "that he's one of us; second-in-command to our boss, Gonzap."


	3. Chapter 2

_A/N: Hi! So, it hasn't been too long since the first chapter's been posted, but I figured I might as well get the second one up now, especially since I'm not_ totally_ sure how long the next one will take; I've still got some final assignments to take care of before graduation, but I should be good to go during the summer!_

_I've read every review I've gotten, and each and every review, favorite, and follow lights up my life! I can't thank you guys enough!_

* * *

A pair of crimson eyes stared into a metal door, its owner's brows furrowed and long, silver hair disheveled. Each passing minute seemed to evoke another impatient grunt from this man, whose only company was a bipedal, taloned being with a hooked, red beak. The Blaziken rested a clawed hand on his trainer's shoulder and cooed reassuringly–an unlikely source of comfort from a Pokémon that seemed to have a perpetual glare–a gesture to which the man responded simply by giving the Blaziken a brief nod.

The two had been expecting the door to his office to slide open at any minute with two peons and a young girl who had made herself their target. When the first of this man's organization's modified Pokémon had begun to make public their appearances in the hands of trainers, little thought had been given to the possibility of psychics detecting anything unusual about them. "They're essentially the same Pokémon," the engineers had told their leader. "There's little reason to believe that they would have any unusual auras."

Rendering them into fighting machines would have no effect on the auras they gave off to psychics? Were these scientists that idiotic?

Was _he_ so idiotic for blindly trusting their word?

The flat-screen on the wall adjacent to his desk flickered to life and a man with hair styled to resemble a Poké Ball appeared on the screen. As was usual for him, his feet were moving in place without regard to what the rest of his body was doing, but his steps seemed harsher and angrier than usual.

"Miror B.," the silver-haired man said, trying to keep his voice as unwavering as possible, "why are you calling me? I've expected your minions to arrive here with the girl by now."

"Master Nascour, that's _exactly_ what I'm talkin' to you about." Only his dance steps and gritted teeth betrayed Miror B.'s frustration. "I trusted those boys with that very task. The _darlings_ they are, they let her go run off with the most grizzly little roughneck I done seen in my life! I can't-?

"They _what_?!" Nascour smashed his fists against his desk, his face dyed a bright red. "And you did _nothing_ to get her back?! To think I ask so little of you and—"

"Now, now, Master Nascour." Miror B. grimaced. "You ain't givin' me no easy task. You want me to run Pyrite—"

"I do not give a _damn_ what else you have to do!" The conversation had swiftly erupted into little more than a shouting match between Nascour and Miror B.; thus far, Nascour seemed to be overpowering Miror B. in the same manner that a cannon would overpower a yapping Growlithe. "I give an order, you and your peons follow through. Is this so hard for you to understand?!"

Miror B. was given no opportunity to respond when Nascour pressed a large button on a remote control, ceasing communication with the eccentric dancer. Nascour slumped into his seat and massaged his temples. Why in Arceus' name did he ever even hire, much less give an admin position to, such a clown who couldn't even separate dancing from his duties? It would be the fault of Miror B. if Nascour had to face any more wrath because of his minions' incompetence.

Fear of facing the worst from _him_, in fact, was why the very thought of imperfection made Nascour feel sick to his stomach.

He had been given the task of overseeing the entire organization, from its operations to many of its future plans. Hell, he was _lucky_ to have known his superior for long enough to be blessed with this position.

But he had seen what befalls anyone–Nascour included–who steps a toe out of line. He _couldn't_ allow anything to end up a hair short of perfect.

A low, slow caw came from the direction of Nascour's Blaziken. Nascour swiveled his chair to see the Pokémon he had called his friend since childhood looking at him with as much concern as the face of a giant raptor could possibly show. Though the two spoke different languages, they had known each other for so long that Nascour needed not hear a human tongue to know that his Blaziken was asking if there was anything else that could be done; there had to have been, those yellow eyes seemed to say, surely.

"You couldn't ask me that, Tor." Nascour sighed. "So long as I have these degenerates working under me, what could you expect me to do?"

Tor shook his head, a hunt of frustration with Nascour's hopelessness beginning to reveal itself. Nascour knew precisely what Tor was thinking: He was still obligated to make the most of what they had. Nascour held his head in his hands as if physically forcing himself to find some sort of solution. Miror B.'s division had already seeped its way into power over Pyrite, a virtually lawless slum to begin with, and Nascour had received reports that Duking Ginzar, the closest Pyrite had to a competent authority figure as head of the Pyrite Colosseum, was beginning to lose morale in the face of Miror B.'s virtual takeover.

The Pyrite Colosseum. The only reason any outsider would willingly travel to Pyrite that even had some popularity among the town's locals. The stadium where battles were staged and prizes – directly from the Colosseum itself as well as given out shadily via the submarket – were given generously to its victors.

Nascour was beginning to think that maybe _he_ could scout for a few prizes there, himself. After all, the girl he had initially set his sights on couldn't have been the only psychic out there, and more Pokémon taking part in battles would surely draw more psychics' attention as well as bring them out from the shadows. Besides, it would be better to draw them out now than to search through all of Orre, Nascour believed.

He took a deep breath. "Tor," he said, "there _is_ still something I can do.…"

Beginning to regret hanging up on Miror B., Nascour redialed him. After a very brief dialtone, his face appeared on the screen once again, his chipper demeanor nearly back as if Nascour's outburst has never happened.

"Master Nascour," Miror B. asked, "now what brings you back?"

Nascour wasted no time in delivering his order. "Forget about the girl for now; there are likely to be many more out there like her. I'll need you to make some arrangements at the Pyrite Colosseum."

* * *

A rush of black fur, a jolt of pure terror, and the desperate pleas of his mother and father were the last things that seven-year-old Wes could remember before darkness overtook his senses and tore him from everything that he knew and loved.

Had an hour passed before he opened his eyes to a tiny room apparently composed of scrap metal and throbbing ache on his right shoulder? Had a day passed? A week? A month? At that moment, the answer did not seem to matter. Only one question lingered in his mind, and it was the only question that he cared to have answered:

_Where are Mom and Dad?_

Wes only vaguely remembered him and his parents being held at knifepoint, three huge, black, wolf-like Pokémon flanking them. Panic so consumed the young child that he just barely made out the attackers' demands; something about money, something about repaying a debt….

And now his parents were nowhere in the tiny, steel room with him. Wes forced himself to arise from the springy, scratchy cot he had awoken on and cried out, both from the pain in his shoulder and the confusion he felt alone in this strange place.

"Dad? Mom?" His wail bounced off the walls. "Where are you? It really hurts…."

As Wes gripped his injured shoulder, he felt the texture of a coarse fabric that he did not recognize as his shirt. He looked down and saw that, in place of the brightly-colored tee shirt he had been wearing, his bare chest and shoulder were now clumsily bandaged by a white cloth that was stained with red splotches.

If he had bandages, Wes thought, then his mother, at least, _had_ to be nearby! Who else could have been there to care for him? This tiny spark of hope prompted Wes to move for the metal door; if his parents were behind it, they could tell him where this strange place was and what had happened!

That spark was extinguished when the door slid open before he could read it. A gigantic, muscular man appeared before him. Wes shivered under his gaze; this man loomed over the boy, his eyes–one brown and one blue–piercing Wes like daggers under jagged brows. Two tiny, trembling mounds of brown-and-tan fur were in his huge arms; Wes recognized them both as baby Eevees.

"Finally awake? Good." The newcomer's voice was rough and lacked any semblance of warmth.

"Where are my mom and dad?" Wes squeaked. "Where'd they go?"

The stranger snorted. "They're dead, kid. And you ought to be grateful _you_ aren't, too."

_Dead? They're dead?_

Wes' parents were gone? That couldn't have been right; he had to be wrong.

"How would _you_ know?!" Wes demanded, desperately trying to convince himself that what he just heard was false. "They're _not_ dead! Just go and ch—"

"I saw them myself, kid," the man growled. "Of _course_ they're dead. Just be thankful I even went and saved you in the goddamn first place; Arceus knows how _you_ even survived that attack. Here; just take these two."

He placed the two baby Pokémon beside Wes' feet; shaking, scared, and as confused as the child in their presence, they looked up at him and cried out.

"And get your ass back in bed. We'll talk more once you've healed some."

He waited for no reply before leaving, the door slamming behind him. Without his rescuer in the room, Wes fell to the ground, his wobbling knees no longer able to hold him. _Mom. Dad. They're dead._

He would never see his parents again. He would never even be able to go _home_ again. He would never play with his father or see his mother's warm smile again.

As far as Wes knew, as long as he was stuck in this metallic prison, he would forever be estranged from everything he once knew.

The young Eevees scratched at the door, their distressed cries mingling with Wes' blubbering sobs.

* * *

It was all Rui could do to gawk at Wes in horrified shock. Wes, a Team Snagem member… She had been warned about that criminal gang before she left her quaint, little hometown in Unova; in fact, she had nearly been forbidden to leave alone precisely _because_ of dangers like them and her kidnapping ordeal, and it had taken at least a month of pleading before her parents finally allowed her to see her grandparents in Orre. And now the man she trusted to help her find safety was one of those threats?

"Wes…!" Rui finally gathered the courage to speak up. "I trusted you!"

Every inch of her body screamed for her to get as far away from the situation as possible, but one of the Snagem grunts must have picked up on her intention to flee, for her locked his arms around her abdomen and held onto her tightly in spite of her attempts to squirm away.

"You ain't goin' anywhere," he jeered, "not if you got anything to do with Wes."

"But I _don't_!" Her voice erupted into a plea for freedom. "Just let me go, please!"

With Rui restrained, the oldest of the group–their apparent leader for the time being–could feel confident in facing Wes head-on. "You forgetting what great care we took of you, Wes?" he spat. Anger was rising in his voice, and yet… Rui could almost detect the smallest hint of hurt in his rough voice. "You really so ungrateful that you just shit all over everything we gave you and steal all the rest?!" He withdrew a Poké Ball from his belt. "Glin—" He tossed it to the ground. "—Just like we planned!"

The Gloom that this Snagem member released–a stout, indigo-and-red, mushroom-like Pokémon–immediately began to release dark green spores from his capped head. Rui saw Wes' eyes widen in shock; Wes flicked one of his Poké Balls out of his coat pocket, but his fingers were crushed by the same black boot that had kicked him down.

"Now, I ain't having any of _that_," the boot's owner smirked. "You just keep—Dammit!"

"Tesni!" _And thank Arceus,_ Rui thought. The Poké Ball Wes happened to grab belonged to his Espeon.

"Confusion!" Wes had time only to bark out a command before Glin unleashed his spores. Tesni's psychic energy disabled Glin and thrust his entire body into the marble wall. Though Tesni's swift victory calmed Rui's nerves somewhat, she was still very far from at ease. What were these thugs going to do to them now? All of the stories she'd heard about wrongdoers from Orre and all of the worst-case scenarios she could think of played out in her mind.

But, to her surprise, Glin's trainer took a step backwards and glared at Wes, who found enough strength in himself to rise to his knees.

"I thought you'd have been a little more prepared than that…" Wes coughed, then continued, "…if you thought you could steal from Snagem's best thief."

The glint in Wes' amber eyes was so fierce that suing it caused Rui's blood to run cold. He looked _vicious_, almost, like a Sneasel whose nest had just been disturbed.

"What the hell, Wakin?!" Rui's captor shouted; with his face so close to her own, Rui felt his voice ringing in her ears. "Ya _knew_ that might happen; ya should have brought Rig along, too!"

Wakin hesitated to answer, his gaze still fixed on Wes, but he finally muttered, "Damn you, Wes. You're still sharp as a tack even without us." Eyes hard as stone, he grabbed Wes by the collar of his coat. "But don't think this means we're letting you off the hook. You'd best watch yourself, because by Ho-oh's name, _we'll_ be watching you. And we'll make you pay."

Shoving Wes back to the ground, Wakin ordered a retreat; Rui gasped as her midsection was freed from the Snagem grunt's grip. She watched the gang flee, Glin recalled back into his Poké Ball, and finally allowed herself to take in what she had just learned.

Wes was of Team Snagem, but not only that, he was their second-in-command. He stole something from them.… And Wes declared _himself_ to be Team Snagem's best thief, didn't he?

"You… you're a… you _both _are, and Koray…" Rui's gaze flickered from Wes to his Espeon and back again.

Tesni hung her head in shame, while Wes refused to look Rui in the eye.

"Run." Wes' command was clearly non-threatening; if anything, he spoke to Rui in the same manner that a parent might warn a child against touching a hot stove. "Find the quickest way back to your family and get as far away from here as ya can."

With the feeling of betrayal heavy in her chest, Rui gave one last glance–she would be a liar if she did not call it a glare, for that matter–and dashed away. She covered only a few paces before she heard Tesni mewling what sounded like a protest. Rui only briefly took note of this, however, and disappeared behind a building.

_What am I going to do now?_

That thought repeated itself over and over again in Rui's head as she took cover behind a trashcan that rested just beyond the building. It seems as if everywhere she turned in this place just led to one awful run-in after another. She thought back to what her mother and father had told her back in her sleepy, little town of Nuvema: _You're not even a trainer and you think it's alright to… even if you _were_ one, you wouldn't last a day! There's nothing but trouble out there, we're telling you._

They were right.

And even after her parents had finally given in and allowed her to visit Orre, she promised that she would go right to Agate. She should have known what even heading straight for a village in the northwestern part of the region, one of the only areas nearly untouched by Orre's violent reputation, would still bring her trouble. She still had to pass through Orre's more treacherous lower half, after all.

Tears welling up in her eyes, Rui moaned and slumped even further back against the wall. Doing so caused her toes to push the trashcan too far toward, however; it toppled to the ground and created a deafening crash. Rui flinched, then looked around for anyone who could have heard her. When her field of vision detected no one in the alleyway or beyond it, she breathed a sigh of relief….

…Only for a pair of glowing, amaranthine eyes to stare right back at her when she turned her head forward.

Rui clasped her hands over her mouth to prevent herself from shouting, but a few seconds of allowing herself to figure out who was looking at her revealed that those eyes belonged to no one else but Tesni.

"Eeeon?" Tesni tilted her head as if to ask Rui a question.

Rui allowed herself to take a few, deep breaths to calm herself. As she could with all Pokémon, Rui could see Tesni's aura, and she detected not a single trace of maliciousness in it; in fact, everything about it was gentle, like that of a mother cradling a child in her arms. For now, at least, Rui was not in danger.

"Tesni? What is it?" Trying not to sound hostile, Rui added, "Why did you follow me?"

The Espeon leapt from her perch on top of the fallen trashcan and, purring, snuggled up against Rui's calf.

Rui couldn't help but smile. "Yeah, I know you don't mean any harm. But what about Wes?" Perhaps she should have been more cautious about question Wes' nature in front of his Pokémon, but she continued nonetheless: "He said he's from Team Snagem; I… I'm sorry. I just don't know what to think of that."

Tesni ceased purring and flattened herself against the concrete ground, hiding her muzzle behind her tiny, front paws. A little squeak escaped Tesni, and Rui immediately got the message that Wes—as far as she could assume, at least—didn't even _want_ to stay with the criminal gang. They had been hunting him down after his supposed betrayal, after all, and he fought right back rather than trying to cooperate with them. He may not be a threat; after all, nothing about Wes sans Rui's recent discovery about him indicated that he could have been a threat to her. If anything, hadn't he said that she shouldn't put herself in danger by being around him? Wouldn't that have meant Wes was concerned for her safety?

"Well…" Rui sighed, "what do _you_ think, Tesni? About Wes, I mean?" Rui trusted Tesni's judgment; not only was the Espeon a Pokémon under Wes' care, but Rui was certain that Tesni's nature was genuine. An enormous part of Rui did not want to believe that Wes was dangerous; he'd _saved_ her, for Arceus' sake, and he was probably her only hope for safely finding refuge in Agate Village.

Tesni erupted into a much more audible purr than before and squeezed cozily onto Rui's lap; a reflection of her feelings for her trainer, Rui figured. Tesni _loved_ Wes, for that matter; when Tesni looked up at Rui, a distant look overcame the fennec Pokémon's eyes, as if she was reliving years of memories she shared with Wes.

It was as much of a confirmation as Rui believed she would get. She had to go back to Wes; with little alternative to wandering Orre's deserts alone, she needed to trust Tesni's word.

Besides, maybe Wes could use a friend. He couldn't have been anything other than lonely if he'd just rejected his entire gang.

Rui stood up and, sighing, brushed gravel off of her skirt. "Guess I'll have to take your word for it, huh?" she said to Tesni. With a chuckle, she added, "But you'll watch my back if he turns on me, right?"

She immediately regretted her half-joke when she saw Tesni since and heard her mew uncomfortably. Rui wanted to slam her head against the nearest wall; of _course_, she had as little common sense as she always did, it seemed. _Idiot, Rui! Idiot!_

"Sorry, sorry…." she groaned. "Why don't we just go and find Wes again?"

Sure enough, Tesni and Rui found Wes precisely where they left him: Only yards away from Phenac Stadium and surrounded by only the faint rumbling of the crowd inside as a colosseum challenge was under way. This time, however, Koray was present and—albeit awkwardly—trying to comfort his trainer, who was just about squeezing his scalp in apparent frustration. Rui's stomach tied into a knot and was soothed little by memories of Tesni's reassurance that Wes was not the kind of monster that Team Snagem was. Truthfully, she still couldn't help but _dread_ having to face Wes once more, but at the moment, he was still her best hope of getting to Agate safely. She took a deep breath, but was saved by Tesni bounding over to Wes. She mewed loudly and caught the boy's attention immediately; he cast her and Rui a narrowed, critical gaze. Koray's throat rumbled and he shook his head as if he had been expecting this to occur.

"So, ya dragged her back," Wes grunted to Tesni. He then addressed Rui while refusing to meet her gaze: "Didn't I tell ya to go? You saw what just happened; you'd only find yourself in more trouble stayin' with me."

"That's…" Rui mumbled, "well, no, like… I still need to find a way—"

"Well, you ain't gonna find it through me." Wes allowed himself to chuckle grimly. "Those Snagem thugs? They'll be back for me, and they won't be so gentle next time. I'd been with 'em for ten years; I've seen what they can do."

Rui was silenced by his words, unsure how to reply to him. She couldn't help but feel struck by the information he presented to her, perhaps even more so than the danger that Rui was sure she would face in Orre anyway. _Ten years_ with Team Snagem? Wes couldn't have been much, if any, older than Rui, a teenager herself, based on his appearance and voice. What in the world could have coaxed a young child into joining a criminal syndicate?

Rui, thinking little of her own actions, blurted out, "You don't have anyone else to turn to, do you, other than Tesni and Koray?"

Tesni, Koray, and Wes all stiffened, and Rui immediately got the sense that she said the wrong thing. Wes gritted his teeth and shut his eyes; had Rui triggered something, she wondered? But, after a moment's hesitation, Wes shook his head to confirm Rui's question.

"You know, it was… pretty incredible how you saved me back there." Rui trembled out of fear that the conversation had taken a turn for the worse and she clung to the hope that her new words of comfort might ease the situation. "I think I could even be dead right now if it weren't for you. And, yanno…" She walked over to Wes and bent down to his level; careful to look him square in the eye, she added, "Maybe you need a little bit of saving, yourself?" Rui genuinely believed what she said; she took pity on Wes and wanted to help him if she could. However, she was also concerned with her own safety; when she was faced with ether going out alone again or being accompanied by Wes, what other choice did she have than to convince him to take her under his wing?

Koray's nostrils flared and the Umbreon growled as if he was insulted by Rui's proposal, but Wes seemed… _grateful_. His yellow eyes watered over, but if any real tears did present themselves, they were quickly concealed by what appeared to be Wes scratching the side of his face. He allowed for a sad smile.

"Well, ain't we a mind reader? Tesni taught you a thing or two?"

Rui chuckled and Tesni purred amusedly despite Koray's shaking of his head. Standing back up and extending a hand to Wes, Rui said, "Maybe she did; maybe she didn't. Now, come on; you don't wanna sit there forever and get trampled on by that crowd from the Stadium soon, do you?"

Wes stood up, but, to Rui's slight disappointment, did not take her hand. He only managed a small, seemingly forced, grin.

But at least he stood up.


End file.
